XCOM: The Psi Op and The Ethereal
by GoldenNightmares
Summary: When an Ethereal is captured, she resigns herself to die. But a Psi Op shows her there is a different path to the one laid out before her. (M for Adult themes and Lemons)
1. Chapter 1

**Key**

 **My Speech**

"Human Speech"

'Human Thought'

" **Alien Speech"**

' **Alien Thought'**

 **[Translated Alien Speech]**

{Communications}

|Robot Speech|

' _Psionic Speech'_

+Chapter 1+

+Capture+

 **(Soleirus's POV)**

 **[Soleirus, your forces deployment is… interesting. Why do you deploy them like this?]** An Ethereal asked Soleirus. Soleirus was an Ethereal, but she was part of a small minority of Ethereals who did not suffer from thegenetic muscle deterioration, the rest of her species suffered. She was an expert in an ancient sword technique, since this was her preferred weapon over using her mind, Četiri Mač, since she didn't suffer from this condition, she had proper muscles, and just physically superior. However, her armour and blades were designed after an ancient clan, from which she descended, a clan which went against what the Elders of their time. But she wasn't overly keen of the Elder council, because they saw her as a child, as she was merely one hundred and six earth years old, too young to hold the rank of General. This is why she didn't like them, they saw her as joke, and she saw them as a joke. They say they can lead, but they can't even walk or fight hand to hand, she believed her and others like her would be better to lead the Ethereal race to their salvation, the cure they seek. But, alas, she wasn't in charge, she was a General, forced to lead an ADVENT force against those who would **'Dare defy the Elders'**. She honestly didn't want to fight the humans, she just wanted to prove her worth. **[I deployed them in this way to provide fire support, if you will look, you can see the enemy will be forced into this perfect ambush area]** Soleirus replied, slightly annoyed. Soleirus herself, refused to wear one of those masks, most Ethereals wear, believing that if your enemy never sees your face, then you never truly kill them. Her skin was a healthier colour, compared to the drained grey of the Elders and the rest, her skin was a whitish grey. Her hair **Look I don't know if they have hair, but they always wear a mask, so it's hard to tell** was pure white, with purple Psionic energy running through it, and looked as if it were floating. **[I will accept your, interesting, tactics… for now!]** The Ethereal replied, before vanishing.The door behind her opened, revealing and ADVENT Coms Officer. That was another thing about Soleirus's forces, they were clones of humans, not alien-human hybrids. This improved their performance by fifty six point seven three nine percent. It also gave the opportunity for more gene experimentation, which some ADVENT scientists took comfort in, as no actual humans would be harmed. But anyway, the Officer in the doorway had a data pad in his hand. **"If it not good news, you know what happen"** Soleirus spoke in her, decent but, broken English. She can read Earth language, she can understand Earth language, she can communicate Psionicly using Earth language, but she cannot physically speak them with ease. "My apologies for the intrusion, ma'am, but a situation has arisen" The Officer replied, seemingly oblivious to Soleirus's threat. **"What is situation?" 'I really need to get better at these, complicated, Earth languages'** Soleirus asked and thought. "Sensors picked up an unknown craft less than two minutes ago, at its current speed, it'll be on us in less the five minutes" The Officer answered. **"Good"** "Good? Ma'am, I do not believe I'm following" **"Been wanting fight, your troops need fight too. Getting sloppy"** "The troops shall be alerted at once" The Officer replied, before pressing something on the data pad, which sounded the alarm, causing all the calm blue tinted lights, to turn a bright crimson red.

 **(Void's POV)**

{Your target is of high value to the enemy, an Ethereal. Your objective is to capture said Ethereal, and bring it in} Central's voice said, over the intercom. |Void, I would recommend you lead Wolf, to go and capture the Ethereal, both of you being Rangers would help dramatically, and you being a Psi Op as well, should help to subdue the Ethereal| The Commanders GREMLIN said. "So the plan is, me and Wolf run blindly towards the enemy base, while our resistance allies keep them distracted, along with Boomer, Bud, Gears and Eagle covers our tails?" Void asks, somewhat sarcastically. |Pretty much| The Commander replies. "And here I was thinking 'I think today's going to be different, I think the Commander's going to try a different tactic'. Guess who just got proven wrong" Void said, in a joking manner, which even managed to get a chuckle out of the Commander. Void was special, Void was a Psi Op and a Ranger, his Psi Amp being built into the armour, though he doesn't really need it, he could perform just fine without it. His skill with a blade, was somewhat wasted, because his father had taught him swordsmanship, not hacking and slashing.

The light turned red, the rear ramp opened, and Boomer, Bud, Gears and Eagle jumped out along with the Commander's GREMLIN. The ramp closed and the Skyranger moved off to another location. The ramped lowered again and Void and Wolf jumped out. "What do you think they'll do for a distraction?" Wolf asked, only to be answered by a loud explosion that ripped through the area. "Does that answer your question?" Void replied. "Yep" Wolf said, as they began to move towards the main base. As they made their way through the snow covered forest, they heard yelling in ADian **The aliens language** coming from a short distance in front of them. They looked out from behind a tree, to see something they weren't expecting. Standing near to them, was an Ethereal wearing metallic black armour, with four long but thin bladed, swords on its back. From their quick observations, it appeared to be more muscular than other Ethereals, yet still retaining the slender look of other Ethereals. **[Send for reinforcements at once]** They heard it yell, not understanding a word it said. "Yes ma'am" They heard an ADVENT Officer reply in English. "Since when do the aliens speak fluent English?" Void whispered to Wolf. "Since now, apparently" Wolf replied, just as confused. Suddenly, a Gauss round went whizzing by them. "Since when did ADVENT have snipers?" Wolf asked, while taking cover behind a large tree. "Since now, I guess" Void replied, doing the same as Wolf.

 **(Soleirus's POV)**

Soleirus was issuing orders to her soldiers, when a sniper round went into the forest. {Commander, we have two XCOM operatives approaching on your position} The Sniper called in over the radio. **"XCOM… Troops…"** _ **'Troops, use your grenades to flush them out of cover, I'll deal with them personally'**_ Soleirus began to say, then Psionicly said. The troops around her armed their grenades, then threw them around he two XCOM operatives. They both ran out from behind the trees and into the open. **"I will enjoy this, human"** Soleirus said, grabbing both of their attentions. "So this is the Ethereal we're meant to capture?" One of them said. "Yep, this the one" The second said. Soleirus just rolled her eyes. Both of the operatives unsheathed their blades, one with what Soleirus recognised as an Arc Blade, the one she did not recognise, but she could feel the Psionic energy pulsating through it, just like the operative. Soleirus pulled her swords from her back, and Psionic energy started going up the length of the blade. Their swords clashed, sending sparks to the ground.

 **(Void's POV)**

"For an…. Ugh… Ethereal, she's strong" Wolf said, using all his might to hold off the Ethereal's left swords. "What makes you… think it's female?" Void asked, creating a pulse of Psionic energy, to throw the right two blades off of his Psi Blade. The Ethereal stumbled back a few paces, before regaining its balance. "Well… just look at it… it's obviously a female" Wolf said, catching his breath quickly. "How can you tell… it's wearing armour" Void said, charging up a Null Lance. Void fired his Null Lance, only to watch the Ethereal catch and reflect it towards Wolf, who was quickly thrown backwards into a nearby wall. "WOLF!" Void yelled. **"You… strong in mind"** The Ethereal said. "I'll show you just how strong I am!" Void said, as he sheathed his blade. At that moment, his eyes turned a glowing purple, as did his hands, and a purple stream of energy came from his head and hands, and went towards the Ethereal. The Ethereal threw its swords to the sides, and did the same. The two streams of Psionic energy met, creating a fluctuation of energy where the streams connected. The ADVENT troops around the Ethereal just stood there, ready to shoot should it need support. The energy fluctuation started moving towards the Ethereal. **"No… no… aaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr"** The Ethereal screamed, as the fluctuating energy hit her, and sent her flying. The ADVENT troops around her, raised their weapons, only to be gunned down by as the Skyranger flew over head, the ramp down, and the rest of the team shooting out of it. {We need to go… NOW!} Firebrand yelled through the coms. **"You… not escape…"** The Ethereal said, getting back up, only to rendered unconscious by Wolf, who was using a Stun Lancer's stun baton. "Somebody help me carry her" Wolf said, grabbing the, just under seven foot, Ethereal's upper arms. Void helped Wolf carry the Ethereal to the Skyranger, which was landed not too far from where they are.

As they approached the Skyranger, Gears, the team's Specialist, and Bud, a Rookie and the team's newest recruit, ran off and got its swords. {Strap yourselves in, it's going to be a bumpy exit} Firebrand said, as they jetted out of the AO.

 **(Soleirus's POV)**

Soleirus woke up on a transport, of unknown design. But that wasn't the very first thing she noticed, the first thing that she noticed was she wasn't wearing her armour, only the skin tight black suit that went underneath it, the second thing she noticed was the transport, the third thing she noticed was she was wearing handcuffs, that were drawing her Psionic energy into an energy cell, in the middle of the four holes for her hands. She was completely powerless. She then heard multiple weapons suddenly power up. "Don't try anything funny" One of the soldiers said. **"And what good that do me?"** Soleirus asked, confused as to what they think she can do in this state. The best she could do in this state, is hurl insults at them. "You guys should relax, she's not planning anything" The Psionic one said. "And how would you know?" "I've been monitoring her thoughts the whole journey… trust me, only raise your gun, if I raise my gun" "Hmmph" |Void is right, she my be our enemy, but that doesn't mean we have to treat her as one now| The little drone, she'd seen, said. **"What you plan to do with me?"** Soleirus asked, curious, as to know her fate. "At a guess, I'd say, we get as much information as we can out of you, then ransom you back to ADVENT" The Psionic one, who she believed was the one the drone called Void, said. When he said that last part, Soleirus couldn't help but laugh. |Something funny| The drone asked. **"You believe that they take me back now… you wrong… very wrong"** Soleirus said, after she'd stopped laughing.

The lights turned red, and she was ordered to stand up. She, unwillingly, complied. When the ramped lowered, she turned her head away, because the sun was low, and bright. When she finally took in her surroundings, she saw a dozen or so guards, that were to 'escort' her to her cell. |Hold, Tygen wants her down in the lab first| The drone said. **"No wonder we not beat you… you never still for long"** Soleirus said, as the air pad lowered into the Avenger. As Soleirus was taken to the lab, she noticed any human she passed, put a hand on their pistol. |Dr. Tygen, we have her as you requested| Their Commanders drone told the man in the lab coat. "Excellent, may all male personnel leave" Tygen asked. |For what purpose?| Their Commander asked. "I wish to understand her, she's already different, simply down to the fact she was carrying weapons" |I see… do as he asked| All of the male personnel left, including Tygen. A female scientist, came in, and ordered only three of the remaining soldiers remain. "I'm Dr. Avian… Dr. Tygen has ordered me too examine you, to try and understand why you are, well, like you are" Dr. Avian said. Soleirus looked around and saw all observation windows, turn jet black. For own comfort, perhaps. Well in any case, it was better for her, as amongst her people, the only one of the opposite sex that is allowed to see her, more private parts, is her life partner, her husband if you will. Unless her life depends on it, then it's a lot less shameful. **"Remove restraints… if I try something, I'll be shot, it would be illogical decision to try something"** Soleirus said, knowing the scientist would see reason in her answer. "Guards remove her restraints, so she may… ahem… remove her clothing" Dr. Avian said, a little awkwardly. The two older looking guards, signalled for the younger looking guard to remove the restraints. She was most certainly nervous about doing so, as Soleirus could see she was shaking slightly. The guard unlocked each cuff, and removed the restraints. Soleirus rubbed each of her wrists, as the cuffs rubbed against them. "If you will" Dr. Avian asked. The suit Soleirus wore, was made up of lots of hexagons, made of a Titanium alloy. Soleirus undid the back of her suit, by moving the hexagons in the middle, to the side. Soleirus slipped out of the suit, and sat on the examination table, not giving a care about the fact she was completely naked, mostly because they were females, the rest of the reason being they were humans, not Ethereals. In human terms, she was an A cup, in terms of breasts. Her nipples had a green tint to them, as well as her womanhood. And unlike any other Ethereal, she actually had muscles, or at least visible muscles. "Right, this shouldn't take long" Dr. Avian said, getting a needle out, while another female scientist came in, with a data pad, most likely to take notes. _**'May I ask why you don't just kill me?'**_ Soleirus telepathically broadcasted to the humans around her. "Well, we can't interrogate a corpse now, can we?" The scientist replied. _**'Then what, you cannot bargain me back to ADVENT they'll kill me, then kill you, or just not accept any of your offers'**_ "I don't think the Commander has thought of that" The scientist replied. Soleirus already knew that her fate was to die, one way or another. Dr. Avian continued to examine Soleirus's body, taking samples, amongst other things.

"I've got everything I need, you may put your clothing back on" Dr. Avian said. Soleirus put her suit back on, before the restraints were placed on her again. She was then escorted to her cell for the night. |This is your cell, it has been made Psionic proof, so you can't mind control the guard| Their Commander said. **"I… understand"** Soleirus replied. |Void, Wolf, you two shall take first watch, with Nova and Storm as you replacements should the Storm Harbingers be needed| "Yes sir" Two of them, presumably Void and Wolf said.

 **(Void's POV)**

"I don't get it" Wolf said. "What don't you get?" Void asked, curious. "She was so, high and mighty, you know 'I ain't taken none o' your shit' kind of thing… but now she's all submissive" Wolf said, as he just beat Void at cards for third time in a row. "You know, now that you bring it up… it is kind of weird. I mean if it was, say, a Muton General or Viper Commander, they'd be lashing out, trying to kill us, but this one, she isn't even trying to do anything. So far all she's been doing is sleeping" Void replied, rather puzzled by the topic Wolf brought up. "You'd think sleep would be the last thing on her mind, but that seemed to be the first thing" Wolf said. **"Humans puzzle us, as much as we puzzle you"** The Ethereal said, startling both of them, as neither of them noticing her getting up. "Since your going to spending a lot of time with us, we might as well know your name" Void said, walking over to the cell door. **"Soleirus… yours?"** Soleirus asked. "Void, the loudmouth over there is Wolf" Void replied. **"Thought humans had two names?"** Soleirus stated, confused. "Yes, but we have nicknames, to hide ourselves, and to protect our families should we ever be captured" Void said. "Should you really be telling her that?" Wolf asked. "Look, she asked a question, least I can do is be civil, and answer it" **"What are secrets?"** Soleirus asked. "Can't say" Void replied. "See, she instantly tried to dig for information" Wolf said. **"His answer, is answer I sought, you think quick, that is all I need to know"** Soleirus replied to Wolf's comment. "You know what, my shifts over anyway" Wolf said, grabbing his cards, and getting out of his chair. As he headed towards the door, it opened, revealing the Commander, Central and Tygen. |Wolf stay where you are| The Commander said, sternly. "What! Fine" Wolf said, less than pleased. |We require guards for her interrogation, even if you aren't the most alert right now, it's easier than waking up another set of soldiers for guards| The Commander said.

+To be continued+

 **So guys, hoped you liked the first chapter of my XCOM fanfic, I recently bought XCOM 2 and absolutely adore the game, and the amount of species in the game open up a lot of possibilities to a creative mind, such as mine**


	2. Chapter 2

+Chapter 2+

+New Knowledge+

 **(Soleirus's POV)**

|To start this off, you should at least know what to address us as. I'm the Commander, this Central Officer Bradford, or just Central, and you already know Dr. Tygen| Their Commander said.

" **Charmed"** Soleirus said, already learning human sarcasm.

"Fascinating, she's learning human, traits, already" Dr. Tygen said, taking notes.

"Excuse Dr. Tygen. From our understanding you were a General, am I correct?" Central stated, to some extent,ignoring Tygen's comment.

" **Yes, was General"** Soleirus responded.

"So you should know where the ADVENT Avatar facilities are"

" **That I know"**

"Can you tell us where"

" **I can, but can't"**

"What do you mean by that?" Dr. Tygen chimed in.

" **Know where they are, do not know planet geography"**

|Wolf, go and fetch us a Holo-Globe| Their Commander said.

"Yes… 'Yawn'… Yes sir" Wolf said, leaving the room.

|While he goes and fetches that, can you tell us why the Elders need so many humans?|

" **You know they dying yes, you know they need cure, so should know why so many humans needed"** Soleirus pointed out, she remembered the lab, and what it had in it.

|So that brings on to you… the Elders and the rest of the Ethereals have a genetic muscle degeneration, so they'll die, but you, you have muscles, a fair few of them, from what Tygen tells me, so why aren't you suffering like they are?|

" **Only one hundred and six Earth years old, and genetically pure"**

"Only one hundred and six! What age can Ethereals live up too?" Tygen asked, extremely curious as to how casually she said her age.

" **Before genetic mutation, live up to two thousand, three thousand Earth years"**

"And now?"

" **Less than seven hundred and fifty"** Soleirus replied.

"But you said you were genetically pure, what do you mean?" Tygen asked.

" **I live to around two thousand Earth Years, I am physically superior, they do not like me because of heritage and age"** Soleirus said, with sadness in her voice.

"I got a Holo-Globe" Wolf said, walking back in.

|So, point to where the Avatar facilities are| Their Commander said, turning the pad on.

Soleirus pointed to them, there was one in Russia, another in Washington, a couple in the North Pole, three in Australia, one smack bang in the middle of North and South Korea, one in the middle of the ocean, and quite a few more.

"What's with the one in the middle of the Ocean?" Central asked, rather confused.

" **Incomplete, massive facility, capable of processing thousands an hour"** Soleirus said.

"Sir, if that facility becomes functional, the Avatar project will be completed in mere weeks" Central said, worried.

|Yes, Wolf, Void, go and get some rest, in twelve hours you'll be moving out|

"Yes sir" They both replied.

" **No longer have access codes, but can help plan attack"** Soleirus said.

"How do we know you wouldn't be leading our troops into a trap?" Central asked.

" **I have no reason to lie, no hope of rescue for me"** Soleirus replied, sadly.

|She makes a very valid point| Their Commander said.

"Alright, tell us how you would get the team in?"

" **Remove cuffs, and I can show you detailed facility"**

"Not a chance"

|Central, without her armour, she's very vulnerable to being shot| Their Commander stated, impatiently and slightly angry.

"Alright, but do anything stupid, and the good doctor here will take you apart" Central said, with a lot of power and authority in his voice.

Central removed the restraints, and Soleirus soothed her wrists. She then used a small amount of Psionic energy to change the Holo-Globe, into an image of the facility, which looked a little like an oil rig, with the four massive pillars going into the sea.

" **Anti-Air and Anti-Naval emplacements stop you from getting near, but hijack aircraft from this airbase…"** Soleirus said, showing the coordinates for the airbase. **"… And steal ADVENT uniforms, and you'll get in without a problem. They don't ask for ID, since you've never hijacked any ship before"** Soleirus said, stunning them, because they didn't realise, that they've encountered her forces before, and that she started to play the Guerrilla warfare game too.

"Why do you help us?" Central asked, realising that she was quick to help them.

" **Because the Elders are wrong, I known that since birth… descended from ancient clan, who defied Elders of time"** Soleirus said.

|Why did they do that?| Their Commander asked.

" **Defied Elders, because they saw wrong in subduing and manipulating species for own purposes"** Soleirus said.

"So, you've been looking for a way to fight the Elders, but without directly fighting them?" **"Something like that… I guess"** Soleirus replied.

|If she's going to be aboard the Avenger for a while, we may as well know her name| Their Commander said.

" **Soleirus… name is Soleirus"** Soleirus said.

|Thank you for the information, Soleirus| Their Commander said, as Soleirus returned to her cell.

As she laid down on the bed, two new guards entered the room, and stood outside her cell. As she drifted off into sleep, her thoughts turned to Void. **'Why do I think of him… is it because he showed me kindness… or is it because we could see into each other's minds, when we were trying to beat one another with our minds… what is so special about this human, that isn't his Psionic potential… I felt something… something familiar…'** Soleirus thought to herself before falling asleep.

 **(Void's POV-Around twelve hours later)**

{You'll be hitting an ADVENT airbase, before hitting, what we consider to be, the single largest facility we've ever seen} Central said, over the coms.

"What are our targets?" Boomer asked.

{Our guest has informed us that the soldiers at the airbase are human clones, so they need to sleep, meaning they remove their armour. Your targets at the airbase are the barracks, to steal their armour, and the communications tower. After both of those are removed from the picture, you'll be hijacking an ADVENT transport} Central said, before the coms went dead.

|Anyone got any preferences on what type they want to be?| The Commander said.

"Shield bearer" Boomer said.

"Lancer" Void said.

"Yeah, Lancer too" Wolf said.

"Officer" Eagle said.

"Damnit… that was gonna be mine… errrmmm… Shield bearer then" Gears said.

"Sectopod" Bud said, making everyone laugh.

|Sorry Bud, but you're just going to have to be a trooper. But if you get a kill with the Mag Rifle you have to have, I'll count it. Besides, how on Earth are you going to become a Sectopod?| The Commander said.

"I dunno" Bud replied.

"If any of us were going to be a Sectopod, it'd be me" Gears said.

|You're all going to have to leave your armour and weapons behind. Take a pistol, and no other weapons| The Commander said.

"I can only hope we hit the barracks first, otherwise it's going to be a pain in the ass trying to take down that communications tower" Boomer said, making the rest of the chuckle.

{You're going to have to walk the rest of the way, I ain't going any closer} Firebrand said, over the intercom.

"Great… exercise" Eagle said, grabbing her high powered Mag revolver.

"Awww, is the Eagle afraid to spread her wings once in while" Wolf mocked, only to receive a grenade in the face.

"I've gotta stop that" Wolf said.

"Yes… yes you do" Void said, helping Wolf up.

The light turned red, the ramp lowered, and one by one, they jumped onto the ropes and slid down to the floor.

|We've gotta go half a klick North-East| The Commander said.

"Let's go" Bud said, taking point.

As they got closer to the base, they saw at least a dozen transports fly overhead.

"Wonder where they're headed?" Gears asked, as she checked her pistol.

"Same place we're heading, probably" Eagle said, as she signalled for the others to keep their heads down.

"… So I said to the Sergeant 'Sir, if you're going to insult my competence, at least do it…'" They heard, as two troopers walked by.

"Least we got the right place" Bud said, peeking over his cover.

"Come on, let's head to the barracks, then the armoury" Wolf said, jumping over his cover.

"Got two guards, both snipers" Wolf said, as the others caught up to him.

"We want the barracks, not the guard posts" Eagle said.

"I've just noticed something" Bud said, as he looked at the snipers, side-by-side.

|And what would that be?| The Commander asked.

"If they're clones, then why are they all slightly different heights?" Bud asked, rather puzzled by it.

"We'll ask Soleirus when we get back" Void said, as they continued to move towards the barracks.

"Whose Soleirus?" Bud asked.

"The Ethereal we captured" Wolf said.

"Why'd you ask her name?" Eagle asked.

|All of you, pipe down! We'll discuss this on the transport| The Commander said as they entered the barracks, quietly.

When they were inside, they saw rows of triple bunk beds, all of which were occupied.

"You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?" Boomer asked, no one in particular.

"You got another pack of X4?" Gears responded.

"Never leave home without it" Boomer said, pulling it out, detonator included.

|Set the charge, set it to frequency K09… we'll use this as a distraction for when we blow the tower| The Commander said.

"On it" Boomer said, heading for the middle of the room.

|The rest of you, find some armour and put it on| The Commander said, as the others went to find the armour they wanted.

A few minutes later they came back, wearing the armour they wanted.

|Good, now the armoury's this way| The Commander said.

The team followed him into a room full of standard issue ADVENT weapons.

|Get the weapons you're supposed to have| The Commander ordered the team.

Eagle looked at Bud.

"Don't you dare say it…" Bud said sternly.

"Little short for a trooper **Couldn't help myself** " Eagle replied, trying to suppress her laughter.

"You said it…" Bud said, face palming.

After a minute or two, they had their weapons, and were ready to begin the next phase of their plan. They continued to stay in the shadows, and tried not to draw attention to themselves.

"I can't see in this thing, how on Earth are they so bleedin' accurate?" Gears complained.

"Dunno… anyway we're here" Wolf said.

|Myself, Void, Eagle and Wolf shall go and 'borrow', and I use that in the loosest possible way, an ADVENT transport. Boomer, Bud and Gears shall stay here to set the charges| The Commander said.

"None of us have piloting training" Wolf said.

"I do" Void said, as he continued to look out for enemy patrols.

"Since when?" Bud asked.

"Since I was twelve… hey, it's better than nothing" Void said, as he started to head to the airfield.

"Fine" The others said, as they set about their tasks.

About ten minutes later, they were ready to take off.

"Hey, you gonna do it?" Bud asked Boomer. Boomer lifted three fingers up.

"Three… Two… One… Boom" Right as he finished, the barracks exploded, closely followed by the communications tower.

As the tower started falling, Void took off.

"I don't think they noticed a thing" Void said, walking in from the cockpit.

"So tell us, why did you ask her name?" Eagle questioned.

"If she's going to be staying with us, we may as well know her name" Void replied, ever so slightly blushing.

Truth be told, Void finds Soleirus attractive, in more ways than one. For starters, she has Psionic power, so she wouldn't find his ability to see into your mind, weird, secondly, the only female Psi Op on the ship, was impossible to talk to about anything relationship related. She also has a beautiful body, in his opinion anyway.

"Well you say that, but I bet it's something else" Eagle smirked at him.

"And how would you know?" Void asked in response.

"Call it, woman's instinct" Eagle said, still smirking.

"Bullshit, I ain't buying that" Void replied, slightly annoyed, but also slightly embarrassed. "Besides, how do you know what I like?" Void asked.

"So you admit you like her?" Eagle replied, with a smile that only an evil genius, who's just lured the hero into their trap, would wear.

"Wait… What… No, no, no, no, no… I never said that" Void replied, blushing a bit more.

"You, indirectly, admitted it" Eagle replied.

"The fuck's that meant to mean?" Void replied, trying not to get confused, and fall into Eagle's trap.

 **(Meanwhile-Soleirus's POV)**

Soleirus was watching what was going on, on a small tablet she was given, which had very limited access, in terms of what it can do. Right now, she was watching Void and Eagle argue. **'Eagle's smart, placing new traps wherever Void steps… but Void's smarter, taking each step carefully… though he has nearly fallen into a few traps'** Soleirus thought to herself, as she watched Void and Eagle argue. She started looking through the tablets limited functions, and found a file, which read 'History of the human race'. **'Hmmm… never did get a chance to research humans'** Soleirus thought to herself, as she pressed it. As she flipped through it, she saw how far the humans had come in the past few hundred Earth years. **'Remarkable… they've done so much… yet we see them as 'primitive'… we never think of ourselves as primitive, yet we were once as primitive as humans are…'** Soleirus thought to herself, as she looked through some more files.. **'They've advanced their technology rapidly, particularly around times of war'** She thought, continuing to look through files.

"Hey alien… dinner" One of the guards said, sliding a tray under the door, through a small hatch.

She picked up the tray, and placed it on her bed. She took a bite out of it. **'It's… edible… at least'** She thought, as she continued eating. **'Now, instead of inventing their own technology, they're reverse engineering ours… their intelligence is, limitless'**. Soleirus flipped back to watching the team.

 **(Void's POV)**

|We're almost there, the automated response has kept them from blowing us out of the sky| The Commander said.

"So, what do we do when we land?" Bud asked.

"Uh, hello, I can keep them distracted" Eagle said, putting her helmet back on.

"And how do you intend to do that?" Wolf asked.

"Hey, after me and Void had finished our… debate, I was looking through the field manual this Officer armour had on it" Eagle said, pulling the booklet out of a pocket.

|Okay… Gears, Eagle and Bud stay and distract them, while myself, Boomer, Void and Wolf head to the reactor| The Commander said.

"Running the gauntlet again, eh" Boomer said, trying to understand how the Shield Bearer armour worked.

"Looks like it" Wolf said, preparing to make a run for it.

"When we land, we make a run for it, while Eagle and her little team keep them occupied" Void said, slipping a piece of X4 into his armour.

"Three… Two… One… Go!" Wolf signalled to Boomer and Void, as the transport touched down. They made a dash for the nearest entrance, and, surprisingly, none of the ADVENT forces noticed them.

 **(Eagle's POV)**

"Yes, I know it was on short notice, and I know nobody radioed ahead… but we've been ordered here" Eagle 'complained'.

"Who ordered you here?" The deck Officer questioned.

"We were told, by the Major, to come here, and we don't know the higher up who told the Major, to tell us to come here" Eagle said, waiting to be caught out, so she could shoot this guy.

"I'm going to have to call this in to HICOM" The deck Officer said.

 **[No need, Colonel… I believe them]** An Ethereal said in ADian.

"Of course" The deck Officer said, performing the ADVENT salute.

Eagle, Bud and Gears followed, as to not raise suspicion.

 **(Void's POV)**

"Must they always build these places like a maze?" Boomer complained, as they walked through a hallway.

They could swear they were walking around in circles, but all the hallways looked the same, and there were no signs, anywhere.

"Hold! Does anyone else hear that?" Void asked, holding his fist up.

"No… what are you hearing?" Wolf asked, as he tried to figure out what Void was hearing.

"How can you not hear it? It's really loud" Void said, confused as to how they could not hear it.

|Well, what does it sound like?| The Commander asked.

"It sounds like engines… like the Avengers engines" Void said, moving towards the noise.

|That might be our target| The Commander said, following Void.

As they continued forward, the others began to hear a quite humming, most likely, from some kind of generator. When they reached where the sound was loudest, they encountered a fairly large door.

"So now they have signs, of course…" Boomer sighed, seeing the sign above the door.

|Looks like it| The Commander said.

"Let's just blow it up and go home" Wolf said, opening the door, only to be met with eight massive objects.

"I knew it… they're not ordinary generators, they're Psi generators… we can't simply 'blow it up'… we'll have to set the explosives on a timer, because we'll be out of signal range before we're out of the resulting shockwaves range" Void said, with panic in his voice.

"So, it's only a shockwave, worst case scenario, we'll have to wait for Firebrand, while staying afloat in the ocean" Boomer said.

"That's best case scenario… the shockwave is a sudden release, a supernova if you will, of Psionic energy… if it touches you, your mind will be overwhelmed by the amount of Psionic energy, and subsequently, torn asunder" Void said, panicked, and trying to think of another way to destroy this place.

|So, how do we destroy this place?| The Commander asked, whilst thinking of how to turn this place into ash.

"Well, if we can't blow it up, why don't we dump it into the ocean?" Boomer said, looking to the blueprint of the facility.

"That might just work" Void said.

|If we knock out two of the supporting structures on one side, it should topple| The Commander said, examining the blueprints.

"There's a problem with that…" Wolf said.

|What would that be?|

"Yeah, what would the problem be?" Boomer asked.

"Those support structures have got to be, at least, thirty meters in diameter, and the armour on them is, at a guess, one and a half metres thick" Wolf said, concerned.

"Valid point, this thing must be extremely heavy, so those supports have to be incredibly strong… so that leaves us with the question, how do we bring it down?" Boomer added.

|Anyone happen to see any trifluoride?| The Commander said, half jokingly.

"Tri what now?" Wolf asked.

"Trifluoride, incredibly reactive material… touches anything and it explodes… nobody but me and the Commander do chemistry… sheesh" Void said, rolling his eyes.

"Nope… and even if they did have any, they wouldn't just leave it lying around" Boomer said.

|Hmmm… I wonder…| The Commander thought aloud.

"Wonder what?" Wolf asked.

|You see those buoys|

"Yeah"

|They carry Anti-Naval guns… if we could hack them…| The Commander started.

"They could be used to destroy the supports" Boomer finished.

|Shen, I need a hacking protocol that'll use to take control of ADVENT defences| The Commander spoke over the radio.

{Gimme five minutes} They heard Shen radio back.

+To be continued+

 **I sincerely apologise for the unreadable text of last chapter, so this should be easier to read… enjoy**


	3. Chapter 3

+Chapter 3+

+Battle Lines+

 **(Void's POV)**

{Sending virus to you now} Shen said, over the coms.

|Got it, thanks Shen| The Commander said, before plugging himself into a terminal.

When the Commander did, the screen turned from red, to blue. The Commander began installing the virus, when an alarm went off.

|Ummm, I don't think I did that| The Commander said, confused as to how the alarm went off.

"You're merely uploading a virus, not hacking the system" Wolf said, just as confused.

"Defend the Commander… we've got company" Void said, running back in.

His sudden return from being a look out, was followed closely by the sounds of hypersonic, hollow-point, rounds whizzing through the air. Boomer raised his Mag rifle, and started firing it, like he would do if he had his Chaingun, in a suppressive manner. Void and Wolf, on the other hand, were taking a few seconds to aim, then fired short, controlled bursts.

They'd already killed a few dozen of them, but there still seemed to be more.

"Bloody hell, how many troops do they have?" Boomer said, trying to find another clip.

"I've no idea, but considering the size of this place, I'd say a few hundred" Void said, getting the stun baton out, because he was all out of bullets.

"Commander are you nearly done downloading that virus yet?" Wolf yelled, getting out his piece of X4. "Might as well use it" He added, setting the timer, and throwing it behind the enemy lines.

The X4 detonated, making a hole in the floor, the ceiling, and destroying any nearby sections of wall.

|Alright, I'm done| The Commander said, disconnecting himself. |Shen, you should have control of their defences now| The Commander radioed to Shen.

{Copy that Commander, I have full contro…} Shen started to respond, only for the signal to go dead.

 **{** _ **Most impressive Commander, most impressive indeed, although, I would guess my sister had a hand in it, am I correct**_ **}** An unrecognised, echoey voice radioed to them.

|May I ask, to whom am I speaking to?| The Commander asked, as he floated after the others, as they made their way to the landing pad.

 **{** _ **How rude of me… I am Admiral Shadar, of the Second Orbital Fleet. I am sure Soleirus mentioned her dear brother**_ **}** The voice replied.

|No, she didn't| The Commander responded, as they got out into the open.

 **{** _ **To any extent, I am looking forward to meeting the infamous Commander of the terrorist organisation, XCOM**_ **}** Shadar said.

|If that's in person, then you'll be sorely disappointed… but if you wish to meet me, then why don't you come out of hiding?| The Commander sarcastically replied, as they approached the landing pad, where Eagle, Gears and Bud, were in the middle of a firefight.

 **{** _ **And why would I do that? When I'm quite comfortable where I am}**_ Shadar replied.

|You know, I was expecting to meet you on the landing pad… I mean, it's what Soleirus would've done| The Commander said, as they boarded the dropship and took off.

 **{** _ **She was a fool… look where being outside of a command centre got her!**_ **}** Shadar replied, angrily.

|Well as much as I enjoyed our chat, I'm afraid I must depart| The Commander said, before telling Wolf to radio Shen, to tell her to bring it down.

As they made their escape, they watched as the Naval guns turned and begun to destroy two of the massive support structures, and watched as the troops tried to get to the dropships, only to fail and see the crafts slide into the ocean, as the facility began to topple, but not before a lone dropship escaped.

"I can only assume that to be Shadar" Void said, removing his helmet.

|As can I| The Commander agreed, as the dropship's doors closed.

"I'll assume he's the one who triggered the alarm" Boomer said, removing most of his armour.

"Most likely" Wolf answered, sitting down and leaning against the wall.

"That's a good look for you… you should keep that armour" Eagle said, dropping her rifle.

"Well… I will admit, it is rather comfortable" Wolf admitted.

"Bud get any kills?" Boomer asked.

"Two or three… but mostly he was keeping them in one place, allowing us to kill them" Gears said.

|We could make you the new Support class, and give you the new SAW we developed| The Commander said.

"Hey Bud, Bud…" Eagle said.

Everyone looked to Bud, to see he'd fallen asleep.

"Guess gettin' shot at to this extent, tired the poor kid out" Eagle said, sitting next to Wolf.

'They act like they hate each other, but I know they have a thing for each other… yet they never show it, properly, around us' Void thought to himself.

It was true, they had a thing for each other, but only Void has caught on to it.

But in any case, it was a hard fought battle, but in the end, they emerged victorious. But they were all in need of a good rest. They just had to get off the dropship, blow it up, and get on the Skyranger.

 **(Soleirus's POV-Two hours later)**

"Thanks to your information, and 'help', the team made it back in one piece… however, you forgot to mention the presence of an Ethereal, your brother, I believe" Central said.

At the mention of her brother, Soleirus went ballistic.

" **T'varak"** She said, in her own language, whilst sending out a powerful shockwave, which threw everyone against the wall. **"Never mention brother again… filthy coward"** She said, enraged.

"Why do you say that?" Void asked.

" **Like me, but not honour tradition… fight out of battle, safe, away from fight"** Soleirus answered, a bit calmer.

"Hmmm, I see, makes sense when you think about it, they do not honour your bloodline's traditions, then they are not fit to be part of those who honour tradition" Void considered, sympathising with Soleirus.

"An old way of thinking" Central pointed out.

" **As time change, tradition change too fit"** Soleirus said, returning to her cell.

|Void, how are you able to sympathise with her?| The Commander asked, curious.

"While I personally don't follow my family's tradition, simply because died when ADVENT was born, but it was something that I will always remember my father telling me" Void replied, leaving.

"Commander, if she continues to behave this way, we'll have to 'terminate' her" Central said.

|She's not some, animal, she's an intelligent being, but even if she was an animal, just because it behaves badly once, doesn't mean it needs to be put down if it's bad again| The Commander replied, slightly disgusted by his words.

Little did they know, Soleirus was listening, and was hurt badly by their words. She knew that they weren't going to be extremely kind, if kind at all, but she didn't expect this. She wiped the tear, that had formed, away. She didn't want to die, not yet at least. She wanted to see the Elders fall, before she died. **'Humans at their finest… beings capable of great compassion, but also great hatred'** Thought to herself. She knew Central would feel better, if she wasn't on board the ship. But after her capture, she had nowhere to go, except this ship, or six feet under. She thought that by giving them facility locations and a way to destroy the largest one, would, at the very least, earn a small amount of trust, but she apparently thought wrong. She was just laying there, when she heard the door slide open. She saw Void walk in, with no other guards.

"Solierus, I have asked the Commander if I can unlock your cell" Void said, unlocking her cell.

" **Why?"** Soleirus asked, confused.

"Because I want to be able to face the Elders in a battle of the mind, should it come to that, or a gatekeeper" Void said.

" **You seek help, from me?"** Soleirus asked, puzzled as to why he would ask for her help.

"Well… yeah, I mean from my understanding, you're not a threat" Void explained.

" **Cannot improve Psionic potential, but can teach new abilities"** Soleirus said, standing up.

"What kind of abilities?" Void asked.

Soleirus held an open hand up, and an orb of Psionic energy appeared in it.

" **You've seen reanimation ability, yes?"** Soleirus questioned.

"Yeah, I've seen them, and felt their bite" Void remembered, scratching a scar on his arm.

" **Only work on recently deceased. Focus on their dying mind, then take command"** Soleirus said, sending the orb into Void's head.

"Wha… What did you just do?" Void asked, recovering from the shock of it.

" **Gave you power, ability to bring dead back… temporarily"** Soleirus said.

Void was just practicing his ability, to the limited extent he could, while Soleirus watched, when the entire vessel shook, as a wave of energy swept through the ship.

 **(Central's POV)**

"We've lost power! We're goin' down, FAST!" Central yelled, as he held onto a railing, while the Holo-Globe flickered behind him, and the screens went staticky and sparked.

"Impossible! There's no damage to the engines!" Shen said, in a somewhat calm manner, as she looked at the only functional screen. "Unless… they used an Electro Magnetic Pulse! If I could just bypass all this alien circuitry… hold on!"

"Shen!" Central said, as the altitude metre went down faster than he could read it.

"It's not accepting the transfer!" Shen said, fairly calmly, as error messages in ADian appeared on the screen. "Interface ready… it's not accepting my commands!" Shen said, as even more error messages appeared.

"SHEN!" Central yelled, as he watched the altitude metre turn red.

"Right!" Shen said, as she moved away from the monitor, and over to a panel on the wall.

She ripped the panel off of the wall. She turned a small device inside, reversing the power flow, turning it from green to orange. It released a surge of energy which blew her back. All of the deck crew began to panic, until they heard the engines start to spin up. Their rapid decent began to slow as they passed through the cloud cover.

 **(Wolf's POV-Minutes after landing)**

"Did anyone catch the number of that UFO?" Wolf, sarcastically, asked.

"The driver's going to get a few points on his license" Eagle responded, attempting to stand up, only to fall over again, as she hit her head against one of the bunks.

"Here… let me help you" Wolf said, going over to her, and helping her up.

"Come on Bud… get up" Gears said to Bud, who was, partially, unconscious.

"No Mum… I don't wanna go school today… the other boys make fun of me" Bud, unknowingly, said.

"Sorry about this" Gears said, as she slapped him hard across the face.

"OWWWWW! What was that for?" Bud yelled.

"Well, at least your awake" Boomer stated.

The lights suddenly went red, as they heard the emergency warning over the intercom.

{|All personal, Code Red. Multiple hostile contacts in bound. All personal capable of fighting are to report to the Armoury immediately|} The ships AI relayed.

"That's just fantastic… kick us whilst we're down" Boomer said, while running down the corridor.

 **(Central's POV)**

|Emergency power online| The ships AI said.

The room was bathed in a red light, all the screens sparking, along with the damaged command consoles.

Central sighs, while taking in all the damage to the bridge. "Someone get me a damage report!" He orders.

"We've got a problem!" Shen says, whilst looking at a monitor, before a pulse swept through the ship, causing the screen to glitch, before returning to normal.

"Only one?" Central replies, walking up to her.

Shen frowns. "They just dropped… some sort of spike outside" Shen explains, the screen showing a spike of alien design. "It's generating the same type of pulse that knocked us out of the sky" Shen continues explaining.

"They don't want us… they want the ship!" Central replies, realising why they used an EMP. "Isn't there some way you can… override it?" Central asks, as another pulse swept through the ship.

"Not from here… I can't get the engines online whilst it's out there!" Shen said, looking ever so slightly worried.

"Commander, we're going to have to do this the old fashioned way. Destroying that spike is the only way to get out of here. We can't let the aliens take this ship… if they do, we're lost to the resistance" Central said, looking to the Commander's GREMLIN.

"I don't believe they are after the ship… compared to theirs, this thing is ancient" The Commander said, floating down to Engineering.

"Then why'd they keep it intact?" Central called after him.

"I think they're after… me!" The Commander said, as he went out of sight.

 **(Void's POV)**

Void awoke, in a rather awkward place, for him anyway. He woke up on top of Soleirus. He quickly got up, to stop her seeing him in that awkward place. He heard the ships AI, and went to the Armoury.

"Good god man, how long does it take you to get the message?" An over stereotypical British accented voice said.

Void looked over to see Union, of the Shadow Phoenixes, grabbing his sniper rifle.

"Yep, well, when you hit your head against the wall, and nobody else is there to help you, takes you a while to recover" Void said, hastily putting his Predator armour on.

"We were going to save our home without you" Wolf said, grabbing his sword sheath.

"Ha… like I'd let you have all the fun" Void replied, grabbing Glass Buck rounds.

Glass Buck is an experimental shotgun shell type. It works like a standard buck shot, except when the buck impacts the target, it shatters inside them, causing major internal damage. Results have been, promising.

"ComeonComeonComeon! Wegottakillembeforetheykillus!" An extremely fast speaking voice said as it raced by.

"Wait up Buzz!" A man, who looked to be in his late forties/early fifties, called after the fast talker.

"Swear Buzz is on the wrong team" Boomer said, as he looked at the screen.

Buzz was a ranger, who used two modified swords, who was on the Dark Crusaders, which was made up of XCOM veterans, from during the war, and Buzz was only in his early twenties.

{|Warning! First wave inbound! ETA two minutes!|} The ships AI alerted its crew.

"Who's ready to beat ADVENT off our front lawn?" Wolf, rhetorically, asked.

"If we get through this, first drink's on me" Boomer said, grabbing his Mag cannon.

They exited the ship, via the ramp at the back, to be quickly met with heavy gunfire.

"Gears, move up and flank that Muton!" Void yelled.

"On it!" She replied, running up to a nearby tree, and shooting the Muton, that currently had Union suppressed.

"Havin' fun yet?" Eagle asked Union.

"Oh yes, so much fun, getting shot at by alien oppressors" Union, sarcastically, replied, as he hit an ADVENT Officer in head, without looking at him, just pointing his rifle at him.

"Hmph, show off" Eagle said, as she shot a Lancer.

Void ran up to the turret, that was set up by the Defence Matrix, and used it as cover. He looked for Boomer, and signalled for him to tear a MEC apart. Boomer fired an entire clip, tearing the MEC, and three troops, apart. 'Hmmm, I wonder if what Soleirus taught me actually works' Void thought to himself, as he charged up an orb, preparing to use their dead body's to fight ADVENT.

"Void, what are you doing" Shadow, another Psi Op, the only female Psi Op, asked.

"Trying a new trick I learned" He replied, as he fired.

It impacted the ground, and his eyes went purple, as the corpse got back up, and started to fight ADVENT forces.

"I don't even know what to say" Shadow said, gobsmacked at what she just witnessed.

As he and his not-living, living meat shields, moved up, he saw something, that was seriously going to ruin his day. Charging straight at him, was a Berserker. He fired a Null Lance at it, and killed it instantly, only to be hit with its corpse, which was traveling around forty/fifty miles an hour. He hit a nearby tree, with a tremendous thud.

"Somebody else kill that bleedin' jammer" Void said, grabbing his shotgun, and dragging himself back to the ramp.

Boomer, Rhino, another Grenadier, from the Dark Crusaders, and Conman, from the Shadow Phoenixes, fired Shredder grenades at the device, making it explode.

{This Central to Avenger defence, engines are online, get back to base, or we're leaving you behind}

"Come on" Wolf said, grabbing one of Void's arms, and putting it over his shoulder.

Void looked behind, to see a MEC about to fire at Wolf. Void managed to get Wolf to the floor, just as the shots sailed over their heads, and into Boomer's chest.

"Fuck" Void exclaimed.

Somebody else dragged Boomer to the ramp.

{This is Avenger defence to Central, all personal are onboard} Void radioed, as he watched a Frag grenade explode in front of Gears, sending her to the ground in pain, and scorching the insides of the Avenger.

{Copy that Avenger defence, closing ramp. Pilot, get us in the sky} Central replied, then spoke to the pilot.

"Void! Bud's wounded, badly" Eagle yelled, worried.

Void limped over to Eagle.

"Just how ba… holy shit!" Void went wide eyed at the sight before him.

Eagle was covered in blood, and Bud was, well, the right half of his body was burned, most likely by a Plasma grenade, to point where you could see his rib cage.

{Central, we need a Med team down here… NOW!} Void yelled.

{Sending you one now} Central instantly responded.

"Eagle, what happened?" Wolf asked.

"Bud was suppressing a group of troopers, whilst I was picking off stragglers. He noticed a Plasma grenade, thrown by a Muton, none of us saw. He pushed me out of the way, and took the full force of the blast" Eagle replied, wiping Bud's blood off of her face.

"Get your hands looked at" Wolf said, noticing her hands were blistered, most likely from the superheated armour of Bud.

One can only imagine the mess underneath Bud's armour.

 **(Wolf's POV-One hour later)**

Wolf put his glass back on the table, and got up. Wolf was currently at the ship's bar, trying to rid himself of the memory of Bud's mangled body. It wasn't working.

"Wolf!" He heard someone call, as he walked out of the bar area.

"Huh… oh, hey Eagle" He said, perking up a bit.

"What's up?" Eagle asked, walking beside him.

"Nothing much… I thought your hands were burnt?" Wolf asked, noticing her hands were as smooth as ever.

"They were, but Dr. Tygen developed an improved Med spray that can heal mild burns, in minutes" Eagle explained.

Eagle isn't called Eagle because she's a Sharpshooter. She used to keep eagles, until ADVENT burnt her home to the ground, in a 'raid'. They 'believed' that resistance forces were hiding there, and ultimately destroyed her home and killed her birds, only to be killed by Eagle.

 **(Soleirus's POV)**

"You knew… you knew they'd attack!" Central yelled at Soleirus.

" **Knew nothing of attack, unconscious for most of attack"** Soleirus pointed out.

|To know of an attack like that, you must first know where they are. It's impossible for her to have known, since we're always on the move| The Commander said, in defence of Soleirus.

"You saw her tactics at the ocean facility… she's a tactical genius… she must've had something to do with it!" Central replied, reluctant to believe Soleirus.

" **SO THAT HOW I BE TREATED! I be treated as liar? A backstabber? If that how you see me, then I help you none!"** Soleirus responded, with lots of force and anger in her voice.

Soleirus turned around, and went back into her cell, and used her telekinesis to shut, and lock, the door. Even the guards were shocked, they'd been told Soleirus, though she had her moments, wasn't particularly aggressive, but this wasn't what they'd expected. Central and the Commander were speechless. Central tried to look through the camera in her cell, but was met with purple static.

"Great… she's using her power, to disable the cameras" Central said to the Commander, only to find he'd left.

"Great" Central muttered to himself.

Soleirus on the other hand, was silently weeping. She thought that they were going to ask her if she knew about the attack, which she didn't, but instead, they accused her of knowing about the attack, and assisting it. She was upset by the accusations. How could she have known, she knew the UFO was hunting XCOM, she'd personally overseen its launching, but she didn't know it would find them, or when. XCOM must've known they were being hunted by one, they had equipment that kept them up to date on the latest ADVENT developments.

+To be continued+

 **Hey guys, hope you liked this chapter. Please PM me if you have an idea. Anyway review and all that, and have a fantastic day (or night, I don't know when you're reading this)**


	4. Chapter 4

+Chapter 4+

+Friends and Foes+

 **(Void's POV)**

Void woke up in the Med bay, his arm was in a cast, due to being hit by a speeding Berserker corpse. In the bed next to him, was Boomer, recovering from being shot in the chest by a MEC. Fortunately, Boomer's E.X.O suit protected him, from the majority of the impact. Gears was in the bed across from him, she had a bandage across her chest, on her upper right arm, and probably on her legs. Bud, however, was in the Critical Condition area, no one outside of that room, had seen him in the past couple of days.

Void went to get up, when a Medic stopped him.

"Don't try to get up… we don't know the full extent of your injuries" The Medic said.

"It's just a broken arm, and a bit of bruising… it's not like my rib cage has been smashed into dust" Void said, getting up anyway.

"Well… I, ummm… I'll be back in a second" The Medic said, walking into a small office.

The Medic walked back in a few minutes later.

"Right, my superior has said that you can leave the Med bay, but you must return here" The Medic said, as Void got up.

"Yeah, okay" Void said, walking out of the Med bay.

 **(Central's POV)**

"She's still blocking our ability to monitor her" Central said, looking at the purple static on the screen.

|I wonder why?| The Commander, sarcastically, asked.

"I wonder if Void could help clear up the static?" Central wondered out loud.

|Yes, or we could send him to ask her| The Commander said, remembering that she seemed calmer around Void.

"Well, it's your call, either way" Central said, turning to the Holo-Globe.

The Commander's GREMLIN just shook, like you'd shake your head.

 **(Void's POV)**

Void walked down to his team's quarters. When he opened the door, he found Eagle and Wolf, talking to each other, like old friends, which anyone else would've found odd, but Void didn't, because he'd caught on to their little act.

"OH! Void, you're up! I thought…" Eagle began, surprised to see him.

"Thought I was injured? It's only a broken arm" Void said, grabbing a book from his bunk.

Void left the pair alone, and was on his way back to the Med bay, when the Commander stopped him.

"Commander?!" Void said, in surprise.

|We need you, to talk to Soleirus, and get her to 'co-operate' with us. She's not talking to us, whatsoever|'The Commander said.

"Whoa Whoa Whoa… okay, I've seen into her mind, if she wants to be left alone, you leave her alone" Void replied, a little surprised at the suddenness of the request.

|I will believe… however, I've noticed she's more, compliant, around you, not sure why, but we need to be able to talk to her| The Commander stated.

Void sighed. "Fine, I'll talk to her… but if I get injured any worse than I currently am… I'll get back to you on that" Void said.

 **(A few minutes later-Soleirus's cell)**

Void tried to unlock the door, the conventional way, only for it to say access denied. So he tried to force it open with telekinesis, which worked.

" **WHAT DO YOU… oh, it's you"** Soleirus said, calming down, quickly.

Void noticed that her English was exponentially better.

"Why are you being like this? You're not communicating with anyone, well, except for me" Void said.

" **They see me as a liar, a backstabber. They pointed the finger at me, when the ship was knocked out of the sky"** Soleirus said, as she looked at the camera. She'd removed the static, so Central could see her, as the Commander was with them.

"The Commander trusts you, so I'm guessing that it was Central that accused you of helping them" Void said, thoughtfully.

" **Yes!"** Soleirus said, distastefully.

"I can see why you're not speaking to anyone… so why are you speaking to me?" Void asked, catching Soleirus off-guard.

What Soleirus felt, within Void's mind, was something she had not felt in just under a century. What she felt was compassion and kindness. When she was little over ten Earth years of age, the Elders removed her and her brother, from their mother and father. Their 'training' was harsh, and they were belittled for every little wrong thing they did.

" **I… uhh… I don't know why I talk to you"** Soleirus said, without directly admitting her feelings.

"Huh… that so…" Void said, deep in thought.

" **What happened to your arm?"** Soleirus asked, noticing his arm to be in a cast.

"Oh… this. So I got hit with a Berserker corpse" Void replied, looking at his arm.

" **UFO attack?"**

"Yeah…"

" **You must understand I had no idea about the UFO attack"** Soleirus said.

"Well, that is technically a small lie… you oversaw the launch of previously mentioned UFO… however, you couldn't have known anything about its attack, when it would happen, and where it would happen" Void said, looking into Soleirus's mind.

" **Yes, I did oversee its launch"** Soleirus admitted. **"And you've kept a secret from your allies… Wolf and Eagle"** Soleirus said, looking into Void's mind now.

"Did I say you could look into my mind?"

" **Did I say you could look into my mind?"**

"Very clever… Very clever…"

|As much as I hate to ruin your talk… Void is needed| The Commander said, Central behind him.

"Yes sir… See ya" Void said, leaving Soleirus's cell.

The door closed, and locked.

"So, what do you need?" Void asked, curious as to why he specifically was needed.

|It's to do with Bud… he won't survive, unless you and your team participate in what could be the most dangerous mission we've ever come up with!| The Commander said.

"But… But we're all injured… we can't…" Void started.

"Dr. Tygen came up with a new spray, which has healed Boomer and Gears… however, you'll still be a man down" Central said.

"Well, what's the mission?" Void asked.

|The mission is to return to the old XCOM base… and A. Scavenge anything we can, and B. Use the old Cybernetics and Gene Lab to heal Bud, but as soon as we power it up, ADVENT'll sense it, and be on top of us in minutes, we'll have to protect him until everything's finished| The Commander explained. |But for now, head to the Lab, to get your arm fixed, and get some rest, while we work on getting a temporary member| The Commander said.

"Actually, I would like to request we bring Soleirus… if she's going to earn our trust, this would be the perfect opportunity" Void suggested.

"On a mission this critical… I don't think so" Central said.

|He's got a point… Void go get your arm fixed and get some rest| The Commander ordered.

 **(The Commander's POV-The Avenger's Bridge-Twenty minutes later)**

"You cannot be serious!" Central yelled, the rest of the staff ignoring him, as they were in flight.

|When am I never not serious?| The Commander replied, as he started to leave the Bridge, and head to Engineering.

"But, she's an Ethereal… she can't be trusted!" Central answered.

|Void seems to trust her enough… he did ask for her help in improving his already formidable power| The Commander answered.

"How do we…" Central began.

|Let me stop you right there… She can help us, if we have a second team with us, or even half of another team, we'll still be out matched. So with Soleirus, she can turn ADVENT's numbers against them| The Commander said, looking to the Holo-Globe.

"I'm still advising against taking her with you" Central said, looking towards a monitor.

|She had trust in us… but I feel like because of what you said to her, that trust has diminished. By taking her on this mission, I'm hoping to rebuild that trust… on both sides| The Commander said, heading to the Launch Pad.

 **(Shen's POV-Disembarking the Skyranger)**

Shen and the Shadow Phoenixes, disembarked the Skyranger, followed by clanking.

|Shen! What did yo… ok, that's a pretty good find| The Commander said, staring at what looked to be a MEC.

"It's called a SPARK. It needs a few upgrades, but if you're greeting me here… what do you need?" Shen said, wearily.

|Once I've told you, get some sleep, before making it. I need some Predator armour that'll fit Soleirus, because Tygen is still analysing her armour and weapons. Oh and a modified rifle| The Commander ordered.

"I'll get on that -Yawn- as soon as I've had a rest" Shen replied, heading to her private quarters.

|So…| The Commander said, turning to the SPARK.|Who built you… you're not ADVENT design… rather their MECs seemed to be designed after you| The Commander observed.

|SPARK unit 001 - Built by Doctor Richard Shen - identifying - Command change executed - New commander Name unknown ]]] Identity only known as 'Commander'| The SPARK said, robotically.

|And that's how it'll stay… you are to refer to me as Commander, and Commander only!| The Commander said.

|Acknowledged| The SPARK replied, searching for a way to get to Engineering.

{|Shen, come take care of your robot|} The Commander said, before heading to his quarters.

 **(Soleirus's POV)**

 **(Dream Sequence)**

 _Soleirus was walking through a forest, with lush green trees, and filled with red tulips, with the sun shining._

" _Where am I?" Soleirus asked, aloud._

 _When Soleirus looked down to admire the flowers around her, she saw hands that were not her own. The hands she saw were that of a humans, they were also gloved._

" _What?"_

 _She heard a stream running through. She ran over to it, and saw a purple mask looking back at her._

" _No… No… NoNoNoNo… this isn't… this can't… I can't have become an Avatar!" She exclaimed, stumbling backwards._

" _ **HaHaHaHaHa… look at yourself… you've become what you said you'd never become!"**_ _A voice, Soleirus instantly recognised, but couldn't seem to tell who it was, spoke._

 _She turned to the source of the voice, to see an Avatar, with a red mask, staring at her. All the trees around it, withered and died, the flowers regressed back to buds and froze, and the shining sun was blocked out by jet black clouds._

" _What… What have you done to me?!" Soleirus screamed._

" _ **You defied the Elders… You know the cost… but they thought that killing you was too good for you… you said it yourself, you would live until the Elders fell… your punishment is to watch them rise, held captive in a body you despise"**_ _The other Avatar said, with joy in its voice._

" _Who are you… TELL ME WHO YOU ARE" Soleirus yelled, with tears rolling down her face, unable to wipe them away._

" _ **Oh Soleirus… how do you not remember me… how could you forget your dear, dear brother… Shadar"**_ _As Shadar spoke these words, Soleirus stood up properly._

 _As she did, however, she felt a sharp pain through her chest. She looked down, to see an all too familiar blade._

" _Void?!" Soleirus whimpered, in a mix of shock, and anger._

 _She turned around to see Void, eyes red, and a black mist surrounding him, his eyes devoid of any emotion._

" _ **And now… HaHaHaHaHa… Now, he'll finish the job"**_ _As Shadar said that, Void raised his sword._

" _Please… Void… don't do this" Soleirus pleaded, for possibly the first time in her life._

 _But her words fell upon deaf ears, and Void brung his sword down._

 _Soleirus screamed. And everything went black._

 **(End Dream Sequence)**

Soleirus suddenly awoke. She was sweating, a lot, and she felt incredibly hot. She looked herself over quickly, and found nothing different than when she fell asleep. She partially considered removing what she was wearing, but quickly cast that thought aside when she remembered the camera watching her. **'Why do my dreams turn to Void?… why do I think of him at all?'** She asked herself.

Soleirus then heard the door unlock.

|Hello, Soleirus| The Commander said, as he floated in.

" **Greetings, Commander… to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"** Soleirus asked.

|First off, I want to apologise for earlier|

" **I suppose I must apologise too, I didn't mean to be so rash with my actions"** Soleirus said.

|Secondly, to prove your trustworthy, not for my sakes, but for the crews', I'm taking you on a little salvage mission, however, you won't have the armour or weapons you had, as Tygen isn't even twenty-five percent done analysing them, you'll have modified Predator and a modified Mag rifle… now tell me, has ADVENT done anything to the old XCOM HQ?| The Commander said.

" **All I know of the facility, is that my 'brother' has been there a few times…"** Soleirus replied, as truthfully as she could. **"And while he won't have changed anything to the majority of the facilities, he would've placed something there to trap you"** Soleirus finished.

|Thank you, we'll be leaving in twelve hours| The Commander said, leaving.

 **(The Commanders POV)**

As the Commander left Soleirus's holding area, which he planned to make her room, if she proved she was really on their side, he was met with Chief Medical Officer Dubois,who had a grave look on her face.

"Commander, we have a problem, involving the operative Bud" She said, in her Swedish accent.

|What is it?| The Commander asked, a little worried for the safety of his operator.

"You can't take him on this mission! His condition has deteriorated rapidly over the past six hours. He's in no condition to be moved. By our estimates, he only has thirty-six hours to live, before it will be impossible to heal him" Dubois said, gravely.

|Thank you for this valuable information| The Commander said, processing what she had just said.

Dubois nodded, and left him.

 **(Dr. Tygen's POV-One hour later)**

|Dr. Tygen!| The Commander said, bursting into the Lab.

"Hello Commander, what can I do…" Tygen began.

|I need you to come to the old XCOM HQ with me… can you get research on the Warden armour done, in the next six hours?!| The Commander asked, hurriedly.

"I can get the Warden armour research done, but I don't have many weapon expertise" Tygen replied, confused as to why the Commander would want him to go the XCOM HQ.

|What weapon expertise do you have?|The Commander asked.

"Only pistols, nothing else" Tygen replied.

|That'll have to do| The Commander said, turning to leave.

 **(Shen's POV-Four hours later)**

Shen was working on modifying a Mag rifle for Soleirus, when the Commander came in.

"Hello Commander" Shen said, looking up from her work.

|Dr. Tygen is close to completing the research on Warden armour, as soon as he's done, I need you to manufacture five sets of it for the Storm Harbingers, and one set for Soleirus| The Commander ordered. |Oh and a set for Dr. Tygen| The Commander added.

"Umm, ok." Shen said, a little surprised by the suddenness of the request.

|Good, I need it done in seven hours| The Commander ordered, leaving.

 **(Void's POV-Seven hours later)**

{Storm Harbingers to the Armoury! Storm Harbingers to the Armoury!} The ships AI called out, over the intercom.

Void was woken suddenly by the alarm blaring, and was quick to get out of his bunk.

"HUH?!... Who called in the fleet?!" Boomer said, waking up quickly, only to fall off of his bunk.

"Mission" Void said, quickly dressing himself.

Their quarters were divided in two, males in one half, females in the over half. They were separated by a thin metal wall.

"Somebody get me a coffee!" Eagle demanded, almost zombie like.

"Come on, let's get going" Wolf said, heading to the Armoury.

When they reached the Armoury, they saw Soleirus standing there, with some kind of new armour on.

"Uhhh, sir, why is the Ethereal here? More importantly, why is she wearing armour?" Boomer asked, upon seeing Soleirus.

|I'll explain on the way, for now, grab your gear. You've got new armour waiting for| The Commander said, before turning to Soleirus. |As for you, I hope you can follow my orders| The Commander said, sternly.

Soleirus simply nodded in reply, before grabbing her new weapon, which Shen was holding.

Void, Boomer and Wolf went to the male side of the Armoury, and Gears and Eagle went to the female side of the Armoury.

+To be continued+


End file.
